Ministry of Foreign Affairs accelerates administrative reforms to better serve citizens and businesses
WVR - In the context of innovation and enhancing state management efficiency, administrative reform (AR) continues to be identified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as one of the strategic priorities. Comprehensive solutions are being implemented, demonstrating a commitment to turning reform policies into concrete and practical actions.
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By 2025, the administrative reform (AR) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will not only streamline procedures but will also be integrated into the overall renewal of governance, digital transformation, and the establishment of a service-oriented administration.
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| Member of the Party Central Committee's Secretariat, Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung, authorized by the Prime Minister, presented a summary report on the draft Law amending and supplementing several articles of the Law on International Treaties and the National Assembly's Resolution to enhance international integration effectiveness, on December 10, 2025. (Source: quochoi.vn) |
Building on the achieved results, 2026 is identified by the Ministry as a year of acceleration, completion, and dissemination of effective reforms, aiming to better serve citizens and businesses and meet the demands of deeper integration.
Comprehensive reforms in 2025
In 2025, the Party Committee and the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs identified AR as one of the key tasks for the entire sector. Under the direct guidance of the Minister, AR efforts were comprehensively implemented from institutional frameworks, administrative procedures, organizational structures to digital transformation.
As of mid-December 2025, the Ministry had completed 61 out of 66 tasks according to the AR Plan, achieving 92.4%, reflecting the determination and effectiveness in implementation.
The Ministry also established a Steering Committee on the development of science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, and Project 06, along with specialized task forces to monitor, expedite, and resolve obstacles in administrative procedure reforms.
Throughout the year, the Ministry issued or submitted for competent authority approval 16 legal normative documents (4 Government Decrees and 12 Ministerial Circulars), contributing to the completion of the legal framework on decentralization, delegation of authority, administrative procedure reform (APR), and digital transformation in foreign affairs.
Notably, the Ministry reviewed and reduced 20% of internal administrative procedures, announced 28 simplified administrative procedures, and submitted to the Prime Minister the Plan for reducing and simplifying APRs related to production and business activities under the Ministry's management.
Simultaneously, inspections were rigorously conducted with 8 domestic units and 13 Vietnamese representative missions abroad, achieving 100% of the plan, contributing to enhancing administrative discipline and order.
A highlight of AR in 2025 was the vigorous development of e-Government and digital Government. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs completed 100% of the electronic document management and administration system, interconnecting with ministries, sectors, localities, and overseas representative agencies; the system was operational from July 2025.
The Ministry's Public Service Portal was comprehensively upgraded, now offering 12 online public services, including 4 at level 4 and 8 at level 3; the rate of APRs generating online records reached 100%.
The Ministry also issued a list of 5 shared databases, laying the foundation for digitizing business processes and providing public services.
Importantly, all officials, public servants, and employees in the Ministry have heightened their awareness of AR in implementing activities and official duties. The Ministry's units consistently strive to resolve tasks on time, especially urgent files, serving delegations from ministries, departments, and sectors.
The promotion of IT applications in resolving online APRs has yielded positive results, enhancing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' effectiveness, particularly in providing online public services for consular work domestically and internationally, facilitating citizens and businesses, and contributing to economic development as well as transparency in APR resolution.
Focus of the 2026 Plan
Based on the practical summary of 2025, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs identifies 2026 as a year to focus on completing institutional frameworks, processes, and expanding the provision of full-process online public services.
The first focus is to develop and implement the 2026 AR Plan, aiming to complete 100% of the set tasks, ensuring substantive reforms, avoiding formality. Alongside, the Ministry will issue the 2026 Inspection Plan and the AR Communication Plan to raise awareness and responsibility among the staff and public servants across the sector.
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| Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Anh Tuan and Deputy Minister Le Thi Thu Hang chaired the conference summarizing the first half of 2025's work of the AR Steering Committee and the Digital Transformation Steering Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on June 25, 2025. (Photo: Bao Chi) |
Other key tasks include completing and updating the system of regulations and processes, especially those concerning the management of foreign affairs activities, following the Politburo's issuance of a Decision replacing Regulation 272.
In the field of APR, the Ministry actively reviews APRs, restructures processes, and amends related legal documents towards simplification and reduction of APRs, particularly those related to production and business activities; bringing APRs fully online (organizing international conferences, seminars; establishing activities of representative offices of foreign cooperation and research organizations in Vietnam, etc.).
Alongside procedural reforms, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to implement and consolidate the organizational structure to ensure streamlined, effective, and efficient operations; completing and practically implementing the reorganization of the Ministry's public service units.
